I’ve been getting a lot of mass e-mails from yogi friends lately promoting the new documentary Home. From watching trailers I knew this was an “Inconvenient Truth”-style documentary. I was a little reluctant to watch it, not because I wanted to stay in an ignorant bliss, but because a lot of these movies try to convey the urgency of the matter by throwing a lot of hard-hitting facts at you. I do understand and completely believe the urgency, but having them bundled up together for dramatic effect sometimes overwhelms me, causing me to lose hope momentarily.

This is where my yoga and meditation practice really help. Knowing this is my pattern, I try to be aware of this reaction. I then try to sit in meditation for a few minutes exploring this feeling of hopelessness. I allow it to rise, even grow, but as all things do, it also disappears.

This is where the self-proclaimed label “Spiritual Activist” comes from. In my opinion (and after reworking and adding to a few definitions I found online), Spiritual Activism is a growing approach to social justice activism – one that provides a holistic, relationship-based framework for working for social and ecological change. It refers to thoughts, words and actions coming from a place of love and compassion, even towards the very people we are opposing, instead of a place of fear.

I eventually got around to watching the movie (mostly because I was sick with the flu for a week with not much energy to do anything except watch TV). It was a great movie. To be honest, I felt like it started off a little slow, but it was well worth the wait. As usual, there was the list hard-hitting facts, but it was followed by a message of optimism. It was so beautiful, I felt the need to include it below, to hopefully encourage others to watch the movie, or better yet, to act.

List of “hard-hitting facts bundled together for dramatic effect”:

• 20% of the world’s population consumes 80% of its resources
• Half of the world’s wealth is owned by 2% of the world’s population
• The world spends 12 times more on military expenditures than on aid to developing countries
• 5,000 people a day die because of dirty drinking water
• 1 billion people have no access to safe drinking water
• Nearly 1 billion people are going hungry
• Over 50% of grain traded around the world is used for animal feed or biofuels
• 40% of arable land has suffered long term damage
• Every year, 13 million hectares of forest disappear
• 1 mammal in 4, 1 bird in 8, 1 amphibian in 3 are threatened with extinction
• Species are dying out at a rhythm 1,000 times faster than the natural rate
• 3/4 of fishing grounds are exhausted, depleted or in dangerous decline
• The avg temperature of the last 15 years have been the highest ever recorded
• The ice cap is 40% thinner than 40 years ago
• There may be at least 200 million climate refugees by 2050

Beautiful message of hope and optimism:

It’s too late to be a pessimist; I know that a single human can knock down every wall. It’s too late to be a pessimist.

Worldwide, 4 children out of 5 attend school. Never has learning been given to so many human beings. Everyone, from richest to poorest, can make a contribution. Desoto, one of the world’s poorest countries is proportionally the one that invests most in its people’s education. Qatar, one of the world’s richest states has opened its door to the best universities. Culture, education, research and innovation are inexhaustible resources.

In the face of misery and suffering, millions of NGOs prove that solidarity between people is stronger than the selfishness of nations.

In Bangladesh a man thought the unthinkable and founded a bank that lends only to the poor. In 30 years it has changed the lives of 150 million people.

Antarctica is a continent with immense natural resources that no country can claim for itself. A natural reserve devoted to peace and science. A treaty signed by 49 states has made it a treasure shared by all humanity.

It’s too late to be a pessimist.

Governments have acted to protect nearly 2% of the world’s territorial waters. It’s not much but it’s 2 times more than 10 years ago.

The first natural parks were created just over a century ago. They cover over 13% of the continents. They create spaces where human activity is in step with the preservation of species, soils and landscape. This harmony between humans and nature can become the rule, no longer the exception.

In United States, New York has realized what nature does for us. These forests and lakes supply all the drinking water the city needs.

In South Korea the forests have been devastated by war. Thanks to a National Reforestation program they once more cover 65% of the country, more than 75% of paper is recycled.

Costa Rica has made a choice between military spending and the conservation of its lands. The country no longer has an army; it prefers to devote its resources to education, ecotourism and the protection of its primary forest.

Gabon is one of the world’s leading producers of wood. It enforces selective logging, not more than 1 tree every hectare. Its forests are one of the country’s most important economic resources but they have the time to regenerate. Programs exist that guarantee sustainable forest management; they must become mandatory.

This is just a small selection of the invaluable information provided in the movie. Take the time to watch it. It’s available for free online (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jqxENMKaeCU). What’s 93 minutes of your time for the rest of humanity? No matter how long you’ve been on this planet, you owe it to her to watch it.